HOME EXCHANGE

What does this mean?
It consists of exchanging your principal or second home, your holiday home or time-share, your mobile home or camper van, with another BLUE-HOME member. You choose a country and an area in which you wish to spend your holidays, and for one period that you determine together, you live at the other member's home while they live in yours.

Who can exchange?
Everyone! if you are an owner or a tenant, or if you live in a company flat.

What are the advantages?
Savings -You lodge free during your stay and you save the expenses of dining out. You can also (according to terms of your exchange) use the family car of the member. You simply pay transport costs getting to the destination of your choice.

Comfort - You benefit from all the comfort of main home or secondary home. You have much more space than in a hotel, and more facilities than when renting (for example games for your children or accessories for your baby).

Greeting - You can, if you wish, be accommodated by the friends or the family of the other member and thus benefit from their advice when visiting the area.

Peace of mind - During your absence your home is inhabited, your plants are watered, and according to the terms of your exchange, your animals are looked after.

Opening - You can meet your correspondents friends and be exposed to other cultures, discover the way of life of the inhabitants of the area. Upon your return, you will be able to speak in an objective way about the country which you have visited and possibly convince friends and family that there is another form of holiday.

Preparation of your house

Leave your house as you wish to find the one you will stay in!
- the house must be clean (clean grounds, kitchen, bathroom, empty refrigerator except for an arrival meal)
- cupboards, drawers, wall cupboards of bathroom must be cleared to make it possible for your guests to settle in comfortably (your personal details should be stored in a locked cupboard, or the cellar or attic)
- prepare linen, napkins, hand towels, clean clothes
- leave what is required to prepare a first meal
- lock away valuable or fragile objects to avoid any accidental breakage

Preparing " instructions "

- use of each domestic appliance, of the telephone, etc
- instructions for electricity, gas, the heating, air-conditioning, etc
- instructions for the plants, the animals, the swimming pool, refuse collection, the cleaning lady, etc
- list useful telephone numbers (family, friends, doctor, baby-sitter, etc)
- information on the surroundings (sites, restaurants, etc) and the means of transport (bus, train, subway, etc), various assistance (maps, guides, etc)
- and of course all interesting information that you can think of !

More advice

Contact your insurer for the house, the car, etc, to ensure that are no problems.

And finally make a small gesture of friendship:
- a small gift of welcome
- a greeting by one of your friends or a family member

Home exchanging is based on trust, but it isn't blind trust. If you are concerned about having strangers in your home, remember that you're staying in their home at the same time. Usually the exchanging parties get to know each other by phone, mail or e-mail well before the swap; some exchangers arrange to meet at the start of their vacation, even if only for an hour at the airport. You may be further reassured to have a friend or neighbor act as your "agent," stopping by to greet the exchange partners once or twice during their stay.

Home exchange agencies say theft is not a problem; if there is friction, it's usually caused by a difference in housekeeping standards. But accidental damage can happen, of course, which is why it's wise for a family with young children not to exchange with a childless antique collector. (On the other hand, when two families with children of similar ages exchange homes, they are often delighted to find new and different toys.) Homeowners' liability insurance covers exchange partners as it would any other house guests.

Until recently, exchange services published their listings in printed directories, usually issued three times per year. Prospective exchangers paid to have their homes listed; when they received the directory, they perused the listings and contacted each other by mail or telephone.

Now the industry has largely shifted operations to the Internet. Those interested in exchanging scan listings online, contact prospects by e-mail and have an answer in a day or two without incurring postage or phone expenses. Though most agencies will also do business by mail or phone, the benefits of using the Web are clear.

The agency acts as a clearinghouse; your membership fee covers your home's listing and gives you access to other members. (Many agencies will let nonmembers browse their listings to see what they offer, but in most cases, member contact information, such as an e-mail address, is available only to other members.)

Exchanges are arranged by the members themselves, not by the agency. As a rule, no money changes hands between exchangers.

The services below have listings for properties worldwide. Many offer vacation rentals, free or paid hospitality exchanges ("You be my guest, then I'll be yours"), youth hospitality exchanges and/or house-sitting besides standard home swaps. Exchange properties vary from houseboats and RVs to modest apartments to estates.

This list is not exhaustive. Agencies that did not respond to telephone or e-mail queries were removed, and with a few exceptions, very small agencies, foreign-based agencies and niche services that specialize in exchanges between, say, gay and lesbian, Christian, academic, senior or disabled clients are not included here. Find these by typing the appropriate phrase ("seniors home exchange") into an Internet search engine.

Digsville.com, P.O. Box 106, Hoboken, NJ 07030; (800) 974-6860, fax (201) 792-5031, http://www.digsville.com. Founded 1999; about 1,800 listings. Site lets members rate their exchange partners, post messages online and download sample exchange or rental agreements and vehicle use authorizations. Contact available to members only; listings $49.95 for two years. ExchangeHomes.com, 16654 Soledad Canyon Road, Suite 214, Santa Clarita, CA 91387; (800) 848-7927 or (661) 298-0376, fax (661) 298-0576, http://www.exchangehomes.com. Founded 1986; about 3,500 listings. Contact available to members only; listings $30 per year.

Global Home Exchange, 6140 Kirsten Drive, Nanaimo, BC, Canada V9V 1J7; telephone/fax (250) 756-6177, http://www.4homex.com. Founded 1997; 500 to 1,000 listings. Offers short-term listings (two, three, six or nine months) as well as one, two or three years; fees range from $8 to $57. Contact available to nonmembers.

Green Theme International, 9 Rue des Insurges, 87130 Linards, France; 011-33-555-084-704, http://www.gti-home-exchange.com. Founded 1990; about 2,000 listings. Contact available to members only. $30 per year for online listing; $79 per year to be listed online and in printed catalog (published three times yearly).

Holi-Swaps.com, 11024 N. 28th Drive, Suite 200, Phoenix, AZ 85029; (602) 604-1537, fax (602) 938-0163, http://www.holi-swaps.com. Founded 1997 in England, 2001 in U.S. About 500 listings, most in Britain, Australia, Canada, U.S. Contact available to nonmembers; listings $37.50 per year.

Home Base Holidays, 7 Park Ave., London N13 5PG, England; 011-44- 20-8886-8752, fax 011-44-20-8482- 4258, http://www.homebase-hols.com. Founded 1985. About 2,000 listings, with Britain particularly well represented. Contact available to members only. Listings $56 to $103 for one year; the agency's last paper catalog will appear in June.

HomeExchange.com, P.O. Box 30085, Santa Barbara, CA 93130; (310) 798-3864, fax (310) 798-3865, http://www.homeexchange.com. Founded 1991; about 5,000 listings. Contact available to nonmembers; listings $50 for one year, $100 for three years, $150 for six years.

Home Exchange Network, 70 Broomfield Ave., Newton Mearns, Glasgow G77 5JP, Scotland; 011-44-141-571-8068, fax 011-44-141-571-8069, http://www.home-exchange-network.com. Founded 1997; about 120 listings. Contact available to members only; listings about $29 for one year, $44 for life membership.

HomeLink USA, P.O. Box 47747, Tampa, FL 33647; (800) 638-3841 or (813) 975-9825, fax (813) 910- 8144, http://www.homelink.org. Founded 1953 as Vacation Exchange Club. About 12,000 listings. Listings $60 per year for Web only, $110 for Web plus three printed directories.

International Home Exchange Network, 118 Flamingo Ave., Daytona Beach, FL 32118; (386) 238-3633, fax (386) 254-3425, http://www.homexchange.com. Founded 1995; about 3,000 listings. Contact available to nonmembers; listings $29.95 per year.

Intervac, 30 Corte San Fernando, Tiburon, CA 94920; (800) 756-HOME (4663), fax (415) 435-7440, http://www.intervacUS.com. Founded 1952; about 12,000 listings, most outside the U.S. Contact available to members only. Listings $50 to $68 per year for Web only, $93 to $117 for Web plus three printed directories.

The Invented City, 41 Sutter St., San Francisco, CA 94104; (415) 252-1141, http://www.invented-city.com. Founded 1991; about 1,700 listings, and seeking more in California. Contact available to members only. One-year listings $40 until May 31, $75 thereafter. Does business only on the Web.

Landfair Home Exchange Club, 6432 Alemendra St., Fort Pierce, FL 34951; (800) 458-6557, http://www.landfair.com. Founded 1989; about 5,000 listings. Contact available to members only; listings $29.95 per year. The company also offers custom matching: You submit criteria, and Landfair searches its database for a match. In this case, an additional $250 is payable upon both parties' approval.

Latitudes Home Exchange, P.O. Box 622, Cortez, FL 34215; tel./fax (941) 761-1709, http://www.home-swap.com. Founded 1993; about 600 listings. Contact available to members only; listings $50 to $56 per year. Custom matching service $160 domestic, $250 international.

Réseau International d'Echange de Foyers, M. Siegrist, 15 Tullis Close, Sutton Courtenay, Oxon OX14 4BD, England; tel./fax (815) 550-6605,http:// www.exchange-of-homes.com. Founded 1996; about 800 listings. Most contacts available to members only, but members can choose "open" listing if they prefer. Listings $39 for one year, $10 extra if submitted by mail or fax.

The Vacation Exchange Network, P.O. Box 277, Whippany, NJ 07981- 0277; (800) CONDO-44 (266-3644) or (973) 386-9208, fax (973) 428- 3925, http://www.condoexchange.com. Founded 1996; about 850 listings. For vacation properties (second homes), so exchange need not be simultaneous. Contact available to members only. Exchanges may be direct (two members swap; each pays $150) or indirect (one member lets the other use his home and receives $150 exchange credit; user pays $300). One-time fee of $99, then $19.95 per year.

Here are several organizations that publish directories of potential home swappers.

  • I include several home-exchange links on the free page.
  • Annlin Publications' Vacation Homes Unlimited, 18547 Soledad Canyon Rd., Suite 223, Santa Clarita, CA 91351, tel. 805 251 1238, FAX 805 298 0576. Publishes house-exchange directory three times a year. Directory and listing, US$55 (US$50 for directory only).
  • Exchange Book, Vacation Exchange Club, Inc., Box 820, Haleiwa, HI 96712­0820, is a 256-page, worldwide directory of families seeking home-exchange vacations. US$16.
  • Global Exchange & Travel Services, P.O. Box 2015, South Burlington, VT 05407­2015, tel. 802 985 3825.
  • The Great Exchange Ltd., 438 Cambridge Ave., P.O. Box 60147, Palo Alto, CA 94306, tel. 415 424 8455. Britain only.
  • Home Base Holidays, 7 Park Ave., London N13 5PG, England, tel. 0181 886 8752.
  • Home Exchange International, Inc., 22458 Ventura Blvd., Suite E, Woodland Hills, CA 91364, tel. 818 992 8990. Paris and Milan only.
  • Home Exchange Network, Box 951253, Longwood, FL 32791, tel. 407 862 7211, modem 407 869 5965. A computer bulletin board service. Free six-month membership.
  • The Hospitality Exchange, 4908 E. Culver #2, Phoenix, AZ 85008, tel. 602 267 8000. Publishes house-exchange directory three times a year. Membership and listing, $15. Member must offer reciprocal host services to other members.
  • Interchange, The Association for World Travel Exchange, 38 West 88th St., New York, NY 10024­2502, tel. 212 787 7706, or Interchange, 286 Park South, Hamilton, ON L8P 3G4, Canada. Publishes a directory of professionals whose residences and vehicles are available for exchange with other professionals.
  • Intervac US/International Home Exchange, Box 590504, San Francisco, CA 94159, tel. 800 756 4663 or 415 435 3497, FAX 415 435 0492. Publishes house-exchange directory three times a year: Dec 1, March 1, and May 1. International directory and listing, US$75, US$68 for seniors, US$11 more to include a photo. Membership gets you all three directories, plus your listing in one. Roughly 9400 subscribers.
  • The Invented City, 41 Sutter St., Suite 1090, San Francisco, CA 94104, tel. 800 788 2489 or 415 673 0347, FAX 415 673 6909. Publishes a house-exchange directory three times a year: Mar, June, and Nov. Directory and listing, US$50. No photos. Active membership of 2000.
  • Loan-a-Home, 2 Park La., Apt. 6E, Mount Vernon, NY 10552, tel. 914 664 7640.
  • SERVAS, 11 John St., Room 706, New York, NY 10038, tel. 212 267 0252. House exchange. Membership, US$55 a year.
  • Teacher Swap, Box 454, Oakdale, NY 11769, tel. 516 244 2845. Bed and breakfast or house exchange for teachers only. But they employ a loose definition of "teacher", encompassing active and retired, volunteer and paid, Sunday school, and adult education teachers. Directory and listing, US$42 (US$50 for the directory only). Roughly 700 listings. No pictures.
  • Trading Homes International, Boz 787, Hermosa beach, CA 90254, tel. 800 877 8723, FAX 310 798 3865. Publishes three directories each year. A US$65 membership gets you all three, plus your listing in one.
  • Uptown Reservations, 50 Christchurch St., Chelsea, London SW3 4AR, England, tel. 0171 351 3445.
  • Vacation Exchange Club, Box 650, Key West, FL 33041, tel. 800 638 3841, FAX 305 294 1448. Publishes a house exchange directory five times a year. Membership and listing, US$65 a year; US$80 for a listing with a photograph. A listing for a second home costs US$10 more.
  • Vacation Homes Unlimited, P.O. Box 1562, Santa Clarita, CA, tel. 800 VHU SWAP.
  • World for Free, Box 137, Prince St. Station, New York, NY 10012, FAX 212 979 8167. For US$25 a year members receive an address book; they must then make their own arrangements.
  • Worldwide Home Exchange Club, 6609 Quincy St., Philadelphia, PA 19119. World Headquarters located at 45 Hans Place, London SW1X OJZ, England, tel. 0171 589 6055.

    • Home Exchange Programs:
    • International Home Exchange Network Membership is 29.95 (US currency) per year.
    • HomeExchange.com All listings are on the site and available for anyone to see. Cost is 30.00 (US currency) per year to list your home.
    • Vacation Homes Unlimited Established in 1986. Internet listing is 65.00 (US currency), catalogue listing is 75.00 (US currency) plus a 10.00 (US currency) mailing fee.
    • Canada Residence Exchange Cost to subscribe is 100.00 (Canadian currency) per year.
    • HomeLink International Established in 1952 as an inter-college vacation exchange for teachers. Membership is 100.00 to 150.00 (US currency) per year.
    • International Vacations Established in Europe by teachers in the early 1950s. France is their main market. Listing in 2 catalogues is approximately 160.00 (Canadian currency) per year.
    • Or just e-mail the webmaster and we will list your home for FREE on our site!
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